Auckland, New Zealand

This is a quick synopsis of our week in New Zealand. We left Adelaide and arrived in Auckland at 4am to visit Justin Glyn. We’re not quite sure how Justin managed to convince Tamara to fetch us from the airport so early in the morning, nor were we sure whether we would recognise her after 5 years. It was therefore a great relief when she spotted us and whisked us to the Glyn residence on the far side of Auckland. After a few hushed, “Hello’s” we were lead up a number of sets of narrow wooden stairs and shown to our beds. The rambling house was charming and through the haze of exhaustion we couldn’t be blamed for thinking that we were in one of Harry Potter’s adventures and had just arrived at Weasley’s house. Expecting to be woken up by Ron Weasley and having had no sleep since leaving Australia, we slept in until 11h00.

After a late breakfast, Pam (Justin’s Mum) adopted the role of tour guide and took us around the suburb of Howick and the beaches surrounding the bay, which was very picturesque. The bay is protected by the Greater and Lesser Barrier Islands and so it is more like a giant lake than the sea. Looking out over the bay from the aegis of a bowed tree, milky reflections of the surrounding hills and sky dream on the lugubrious turquoise surface before melting into the sandy shore with gentle sighs. Hypnotised by the mercurial sheen, ephemeral thoughts swell, fold and dissipate.

It was great to catch up with Justin. He really is quite incredible – In addition to being a successful commercial lawyer he can sing and speak several languages (including Russian). In the last few years he has taken his singing to new heights, having made a fantastic recording. This year he intends to complete another grade in singing, learn Cantonese and complete his doctorate about the rights of immigrants and refugees under domestic and international law! Impressive!

That evening the Glyn’s took us out for dinner at a Mongolian restaurant – more ice-cream for Tereza! After dinner we played the “Da Vinci” game and we were annihilated by Pam and Justin. It was great fun but we clearly need practise. We’ve put the game on our “to get” list.
The next day was to take a ferry to the city from Half Moon Bay. The weather wasn’t great but the views were beautiful. Lots of yachts sailed in the bay, little coves with small beaches and/or houses on cliffs. We decided to do a tour of the Maritime Museum. It was very interesting. We learnt how the Maori Polynesian ancestors travelled to New Zealand from Cook Islands. The incredible thing was that they travelled without any tools and navigated by looking at the stars and studying the waves and currents. Maori still trace their lineage to the boats that arrived in New Zealand. The museum covered all aspects of boats, from replicas of the ships that Dias sailed on, to Sir Peter Blake, the successful New Zealand yachtsman who won the America’s Cup and was killed in 2001 by pirates in Brazil. After a quick lunch it was time to head for the airport to Wellington. Thanks to the Glyns for making our stay wonderful, it’s just a pity it was so brief and we missed Justin’s Birthday Party braai which promised to be a United Nations gathering.